This week has been another busy week in and around the constituency.
This Friday, I started off with a visit to Richmond Avenue Primary School where I was met by head teacher Ms Debbie Hughes and two school councillors, Ola and Henry.
They told me all about their election and some of the improvements they have implemented in the school.
Earlier this year (August 1st) Richmond Avenue Primary School was converted to an Academy. Richmond Avenue Primary School has more control over its curriculum, budget and staffing.
It was great to see that Richmond Avenue Primary School has gone from strength to strength. Since my last visit the school has acquired a disused Arriva bus which they have gutted out and are in the process of making into a reading hub for students.
The school is also in the midst of building an IT Suite upstairs. For a school without a lot of land and space it was great to see innovation and use of space by students and teachers alike.
After that I met with Bob Weston, Chairman of Weston Homes. At this meeting we discussed past and current plans for Southend and Rochford and some of the issues that have arisen with Weston Homes' project in Southend. I am glad to report the group is looking into these and measures are being put in place to resolve them.
I also had the opportunity to visit the local Mosque in Southend and spoke with, Imam Iftikhar Ul Haq and some of the leaders from the Mosque.
The day ended with me meeting some representatives from the Department of Work and Pensions, who reassured me that the team at the Southend Jobcentre were doing their best to help every claimant who was transferring to new Universal Credits.